insufflate

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insufflate

/ˈɪnsʌfleɪt/

Where it comes from

First attested in 1670; borrowed from Latin īnsufflātus, perfect passive participle of īnsufflō (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)) from in- + sufflō (“to blow on”). Cognate with French insuffler.

verb insufflates · insufflating · insufflated

transitive To breathe or blow into or on.
transitive To treat by blowing a gas, vapor, or powder into a body cavity.
transitive To inhale (a powder etc.). 2001: Cocaine is usually taken by insufflating the white powdered cocaine sulphate into the nose, which leads to rapid absorption of the drug into the bloodstream. — Leslie Iversen, Drugs: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford 2001, p. 98)
Similar: snort
transitive To exhale upon baptismal water, or the one being baptised, as a ritual act.

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MLA

"insufflate." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/insufflate. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

insufflate. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/insufflate

Chicago

"insufflate." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/insufflate.

BibTeX

@misc{insufflate_2026,
  title = {insufflate},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/insufflate},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}